Since the ruby smack down...

[Gemsnob]

Agreed on most of that. I bought the Niassa Ruby ring with Thai Black Spinel flanking. (3420349) Beautiful ring. The FF in the stone is almost perfect. I had an offer from a jeweler that I am friends with at $400! ("Start price was $899) Not bad! (My bet is he'd offer it for sale in his case at about $600, too bad they are sold out!) I happen to like the ring, bought it for a daily wear item and is standing up well with many many compliments.

I own ff rubies as well. I like them and wear them. I cannot afford beautiful , translucent Burmese rubies. Corundum should not be opaque. What they call Burmese usually is. It doesnt mean I believe my ff rubies will ever be worth money. $400 may be more than you spent but its not going to pay bills for my kids some day. Its not heirloom.

The ones that jump out in the jewelry cases that are transparent are clearly fake, the ones that you see that are not quite and priced crazy high are usually real. I am not looking to fund my heirs' accounts in any way. So the $350 profit on this ring would be nice for anyone, but certainly not the 'one' that will fulfill a couple college funds for the grandkids! (They are, fortunately, all doing well anyway). I play the jewelry game as a hobby. Win most, not all as I say. I sell the major portion of what I buy.

I agree with you about the fake. JTV always says lab created are real but they wont go up in value because more can be made. Im also not looking to fund anyone but some gems do go up tremendously in value such as Pariba Tourmaline. This network does show some gems that are considered valuable but what they show are small gems of lesser quality. Think Demantoid garnet. I think its great that you are profiting off of your buys. Can I ask where you sell? Is it online or locally?

[MilfordsMrFixIt]

Most of my selling is at fairs and flea markets (swap meets). The remainder goes to regular customers and friends.

[Gem Lover]

The reason everyone thought the Burmese Rubies sold here where not fissure filled is because the host always and I stress always and still do claim they are not fissure filled. After purchasing one around 2 or three years ago some thing did not sit right with me so I took it to a jeweler that I know and he confirmed it was fissure filled and also said the champagne diamonds on the ring were commercial grade and very low quality that is when I called customer service and it was confirmed that yes most of them sold here all fissure filled but not all so to answer your question I am not sure when they started selling from the mine with the lower grade and back when I purchased that first ring the information on the gem list under education said nothing about them being fissure filled, they have now changed it so it does say it but yet the host keep saying they are not which really angers me every time I hear it coming from their mouth. Granted we were not paying the high cost of the good ones but I figured it might not be top notch quality but at least it was not fissure filled but it was. I returned it. I was watching another network just the other day and the host came right out and said the Ruby being show was fissure filled and explained it, they should all do this.

[Vicky]

Like I stated previously, if you handle the FF gemstones, like you would handle Glass, pearls and Opals, they will continue to look beautiful and will last. I just am upset not being told about my FF Ruby necklace and it exploded in my ultrasonic cleaner.
Since that happened, I assume that other gemstones from Shoplc are probably FF, so I handle all with care.
Btw- GSN started offering jewelry after midnight starting for a few hundred dollars. They are in 14k gold. I figure they are a lower quality, but they said they would not ever sell FF stones. What I like about them, is the piece of jewelry they show you, is the one you receive.
I still prefer to buy from Shoplc( like they used to be) I need to buy for many family members at affordable prices, so shoplc was perfect. Lately, the coupons dont apply, so I buy from competitors.

[Gemsnob]

Like I stated previously, if you handle the FF gemstones, like you would handle Glass, pearls and Opals, they will continue to look beautiful and will last. I just am upset not being told about my FF Ruby necklace and it exploded in my ultrasonic cleaner.
Since that happened, I assume that other gemstones from Shoplc are probably FF, so I handle all with care.
Btw- GSN started offering jewelry after midnight starting for a few hundred dollars. They are in 14k gold. I figure they are a lower quality, but they said they would not ever sell FF stones. What I like about them, is the piece of jewelry they show you, is the one you receive.
I still prefer to buy from Shoplc( like they used to be) I need to buy for many family members at affordable prices, so shoplc was perfect. Lately, the coupons dont apply, so I buy from competitors.

Several years ago, GSN was sold to a company whose primary focus is to take failing companies and make them profitable again. The man who started GSN, Frank C., had a couple DUIs and possibly drug charges. He was going down a rocky road. You will hear the hosts say Frank retired but thats not true. He had to sell or go bankrupt. The new owners decided to offer jewelry at more affordable prices to attract buyers that had previously not been able to shop there. You will also notice that they no longer use the term VIP when referring to frequent shoppers who buy really expensive items. Good call I think.

[Margui]

And during the Ruby Smackdown they have an Iliana piece in yellow gold with a huge ruby. It was obvious that ruby was fissure-filled. The description of the piece said: AAA "Premium Niassa Ruby". There is a thread with this same description.

[CJM]

One thing they can no longer claim is that rubies rate 9 on the Mohs scale. Not when filled with glass. At least I wouldn’t think so. Wouldn’t they have to adjust the rating on any ff gem? Just curious!

[JewelryQueen]

I think they are an 8.

[Jewls]

I decided to research ruby a bit, especially Burmese ruby. I was amazed at the low prices for huge ruby rings. Karen explained the FF process; she said it was an acceptable process for today’s ruby market. I wanted a Burmese ruby; so I went to the LC education page which has been “updated “ since last I read it. LC used to claim Burmese ruby was from the Mogok mines and were untreated. Now their Burmese rubies are from the Mong Shu mine which produces highly included rubies that require extensive treatment (heating and FF). I googled this mine; it provides over 90% of the Burmese rubies on the market today. So, I don’t know if hosts explain all of this information during presentations. I still watch periodically with mute engaged. But one thing I do know now is that LC has settled on providing lesser quality stones to their customers. I for one no longer want to continue a business relationship with them. LC has changed so much in the past year and a half; not for the good. I might buy items like inexpensive bead necklace; I will no longer purchase expensive items just to be disappointed.

I have paid off all my items and have not ordered anything since Nov. I will not be ordering anything else.